Brown Gibbons Lang & Company Sells The Flood Company

Brown Gibbons Lang & Company announced today the sale of its client, The Flood Company (“Flood”), to Akzo Nobel Coatings Inc., a division of Netherlands-based Akzo Nobel N.V., a global Fortune 500 company that manufactures coatings and chemicals.

Founded in Cleveland, Ohio in 1847, Flood has been a family-owned business that has served the paint and specialty coatings industry for more than 160 years. Flood’s corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities are located in Hudson, Ohio, outside of Cleveland. International distribution is served by plants in Australia and France, with products actively marketed throughout Europe, Canada, Latin America, Israel and Australia.

Currently managed by the fifth generation of the Flood family, Flood is a leading producer of specialty coating and wood paint additive solutions for consumer, commercial and industrial applications. Flood products such as CWF-UV®, CWF-UV5®, Restora® and Penetrol® are designed to restore, protect and beautify natural woods, exterior vinyl and other challenging surfaces.

Flood’s majority owner, Peter Flood, engaged BGL to manage the sale of the company due to BGL’s extensive experience representing U.S.-based middle market companies in sale processes to large multinational buyers.

The Flood Company will continue to operate and manufacture from the existing Hudson facility. Anthony Ciepiel, the current president & COO of The Flood Company has been retained by Akzo Nobel to continue managing the business. “We look forward to leveraging the strong marketing and global distribution capabilities of Akzo Nobel to further develop and build upon the tremendous Flood brand name,” said Mr. Ciepiel.

The acquisition of The Flood Company provides excellent synergy with Akzo Nobel’s existing North American Decorative Coatings operations, allowing Akzo Nobel to further penetrate the attractive U.S. and Canadian markets.

“The Flood Company has a long history of exceptional performance and a very strong position as a platform company in the large and growing consumer coatings industry,” said Michael Gibbons, BGL chairman and senior managing director on this transaction. “All of us at BGL are proud that we were able to partner a local family-owned business with a quality and world class organization such as Akzo Nobel. In particular, it was extremely rewarding to work on a transaction that should bring jobs to Northeast Ohio,” he added.

Andrew Petryk, managing director and principal, and Cameron Miele, vice president, comprised the BGL transaction team, and Brian O’Neill, partner at Ulmer & Berne LLP, served as counsel to Flood.

About Akzo Nobel N.V.

Akzo Nobel N.V. provides coatings, chemicals and human and animal healthcare products to customers worldwide. Akzo Nobel’s Coatings segment produces and supplies paint and finishes for various applications, such as industrial, transport, and marine markets, as well as the DIY and professional decorating sectors. Its products include car refinishes, powder coatings, claims and fleet solutions, wood coatings, coil coatings, coatings for plastics, coatings for appliances, nonstick coatings, protective coatings, aerospace coatings, marine coatings, yacht coat